Adventure is out there!: 2 Tablespoons of Como and a Pinch of Switzerland

Lake Como with the Alps in the background

Lake Como

Today we headed out at the crack of dawn for Lake Como. Unfortunately, I was in a terrible mood when by the time we arrived because I had to pay an extra 85 euros on the train for a new ticket. Somehow my ticket had gotten switched to the next day, so when I was on the train, a very unpleasant woman forced me to pay for another ticket even though I’d already bought one. Needless to say, I didn’t arrive in Como in high spirits, but my bad mood didn’t last long. Lake Como is set in a basin where it is completely surrounded on all sides by the Alps. As you can guess, it’s completely spectacular. Fun fact: George Clooney has a villa right on the lake with his Italian model girlfriend. Despite how much I love every one on this trip, being in Como gave me some much-needed alone time. After each of checked into the hostel and changed into swimsuits, we headed down to the beach. Lake Como isn’t a highly touristed area, which means that we were the only people on the entire beach. It also meant that the city was a more authentic Italian town than more of the huge cities we had been in. I really enjoy the feel of the smaller cities like Assisi and Como.

Stacy and me with our sandwiches

Naptime took place on the beach, and I got to remember what sun feels like. Living is England is wonderful, but I haven’t seen much of the sun in 4 months, so it was nice to soak up some Vitamin D. Once we woke up, we went for a walk around the city, and Stacy and I stopped at a grocery store to grab some dinner. I love traveling with Stacy because she is cheap and doesn’t want to go out to eat every meal like some people do. Instead of eating at a restaurant for 8 or 9 euros each, we bought a fresh loaf of bread, some brie, and sliced tomatoes onto sandwiches. We also bought juice for us to drink and sugar croissants for dessert—all for less money than one of us would have spent in a restaurant. As we sat by the beach, we had a wonderful heart-to-heart and bonded. The sunset was beautiful over the lake, and spending time with friends is always a good way to end any day.

Lake Como: Day Two

This is one of my favorite pictures of the semester--
absolutely gorgeous!

After eating breakfast in the hostel, I went out and read a book out by the water for a couple of hours. I could have just read all day on that beach listening to the waves and enjoying some peace and quiet. I found out at breakfast from the receptionist that it was possible to go to Switzerland from where we were by bus. I though “So, for 15 bucks round trip, you’re telling me that I can go to another country? Yep, I’m down.” Thus, I let everyone know that I was going, and of course, most of them were down to go too. After about 40 minutes, our bus pulled into Lugano, Switzerland. Oh my word, it was absolutely gorgeous there—but for a price. Switzerland is famous for being one of the most expensive places, and I can attest to the truth of that stereotype. A value meal at McDonalds costs the equivalent of $16 (even though their currency is in francs). To keep up with this high cost of living, we met a guy who told us that the men who pick up trash on the streets make $20 an hour (A.K.A. the minimum wage is extremely high). It’s a very wealthy place, and it became a game for us to count the number of Ferraris we saw—total count was 27!!! Another crazy thing was that the mannequins in the store windows were live models who would smile and wave at you. Basically, this was just a ritzy, classy place. There were gorgeous botanical gardens right by the bus stop, so of course we had to stop and take a million pictures. I’ve never been in a more beautiful city park in my whole life, and it was almost impossible to take a bad picture since every inch of the place was photogenic. After pictures, we were lucky enough to find a sandwich stand that was cheap to eat at, and while we were there, we met a guy in line who taught in the American school. He showed us the college up the hill after we ate, and told us a few things about Switzerland. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay in Lugano all day because the last bus left at 6, so we headed back to Como in time for dinner. Basically, the two days we spent on Lake Como involved a whole lot of relaxing and spending time with each other away from the hustle and bustle of life. Travel can be absolutely exhausting, so it was a blessing to be able to rejuvenate ourselves before starting back up with school again. The Italy trip was a booming success.